Tale of the Spiral
by kirby1196
Summary: With Malistaire on the rise and things out of control, Merle and Gamma have no choice but to summon a person from another universe to save theirs. However, when that person doesn't seem to be hero-material, will they be able to live up to the task of becoming the Savior of the Spiral? Rating might change to T later on.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: New Beginnings **

It was their only hope.

"Are you sure about this?" Asked a tall figure, glancing to another creature perched on a wooden pole. "What if they don't comply?"

"You know that this is our only option. He is starting to cause havoc and most of our students are too afraid to do anything. We're already swamped here with the mess he's caused! We need someone who will stand up to this threat, before it gets out of hands!"

"I see what you mean," the tall figure said, turning to a glowing orb resting on a stand. He waved his hands over it expectantly, "Magic ball, show me the one that will restore peace here, and across the Spiral!"

The orb, once glowing too bright to see inside, dimmed down as the two beings starred into it. The first creature backed up in surprise, "A human!"

"Yes," The tall one hummed, "and from a world that does not believe in magic. This will be…interesting."

"Well? What are you waiting for? Cast the spell, and let's save the Spiral!" The creature said in a huff.

"Not so fast. If we pull her too early, there might be dire consequences." The tall creature took a staff that lay resting near his body.

The figure brought the staff up and into the air, waving its other hand as the orb in the middle glowed brightly to the action. "Find the one we see before us, and bring her to me!"

The figure then touched the end of the staff to the orb gently, "But not so harshly, might I add."

The ball radiated like it never did before, almost blinding the two beings. Echoes bounced off the walls, "Ooke… Brooke…. Broooke!"

"Brooke! Brooke are you even listening to me?" A motherly figure stood over another individual, who lay comfortably in a lounging chair. A big book was separating the two, as the one in the chair flipped to another page. With a loud sigh, they brought the book beneath their face.

"Yeah, mom?"

The mother straightened her posture, crossing her arms. "Don't give me that attitude. You dad is waiting for you."

The girl, named Brooke, looked to her mom in a scornful glare, her brown eyes radiating anger. "I'm not going."

"Yes, you are." The mother responded, plucking the book out of Brooke's hands. Brooke sat up, looking over from the chair was sitting in, as her mom put the book back on the shelf it came from.

"You're going to make your father very sad if you don't."

"So? It's not like you care anymore."

The mom looked to her child, who was now looking away, tears in her eyes. She sighed, going over to Brooke. "Brooke, you know your father and I still love you and your brothers very much-"

"But you don't love each other anymore." She pushed her mother's incoming arm away, getting up.

"That doesn't help. None of this does." She opened her arms to the vastness that was room. "I don't want to leave here. I don't want you two getting separated."

"It's just for the weekend honey." Her mom said, going over to Brooke, trying to comfort her. "I don't want this either, but if it makes your father happy-"

"Just-stop." Brooke said, not letting her mom give her a hug. "Let me get my things in peace." The mother looked away with saddened eyes, as if wondering if things would ever go back to normal.

"Alright then." Her mother looked to her daughter one last time, before leaving the bedroom, and pulling the door close.

Brooke sat on her chair, miffed that her mood was ruined, when something caught her attention. There was something sitting on her bed, and she knew it wasn't there before. It looked like an old rolled up piece of paper, bounded together by blue string and sealed with red wax.

'What an odd thing', Brooke thought to herself, getting up from her spot. She walked over to it, wondering if her mother left it in her room. It looked pretty important.

Upon closer inspection, the red wax had the picture of an old tree imprinted onto it, with a big M in front of it. The paper also looked charred at the ends, feeling rigid and stale.

Half of her felt the need to ask her mom if it was hers. After all, it looked pretty important. However, the other half was very curious, and decided that a small peak wouldn't hurt.

Brooke broke the seal, the string falling to the bed, as she started to unravel it. The paper crinkled and cracked under Brooke's fingers, making her wonder all the more just where this came from.

Finally some words appeared, in the most smooth cursive she had ever seen.

_You've been accepted to Wizard City._

"Wizard City?" Brooke asked aloud, questioning just who this was for. She had thoughts of continuing.

She didn't get that far though.

The paper suddenly glowed brighter than Brooke imagined, as she tossed the paper aside, falling down in pain. The paper fell on her bed, unraveling itself fully, as the words almost seemed to float off of the page.

Brooke rubbed her eyes, wide eyed in absolute fear, as she backed away from her bed. "What is happening?!"

Brooke then saw her brunette hair flicker in front of her face, as a vortex started to grow from the center of the paper. The winds picked up in her room, items flying off of shelves and her desk only to circle in the chaos.

Brooke rolled to her stomach and gripped the carpet floor for life, as she felt her legs come off the ground. Soon it was too strong, as she saw in agony her fingers starting to slip.

"MOOOOOOOM!" Was the last thing Brooke felt herself screaming before it was drowned out by winds.

Her hands let go, as she was violently taken into the vortex. Instead of swirling around with her stuff though, her body was being sucked into the middle. Brooke's vision starting to go from all of the turning; her ceiling starting to get very far away.

She thought she heard her door open and a voice. But she'd never know before everything went black…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Welcome to Wizard City**

"Aha! I think the spell is working!"

The tall figure and creature shielded their eyes, the orb shining brightly again. Soon enough they heard the echo of a girl's scream, before something shot out of the orb and half across the room.

There was a loud CRASH and the room shook a little, before the figure and creature looked over to the now pile of books on the floor.

A girl's head popped out from the books, her head spinning and her stomach doing the same. "Uuuuh, no more…"

"Oh Dear. I did say, 'not so harshly'."

"Well, it has been a while since you had to cast that spell."

Brooke, now out of her daze, was alerted to the voices. "Who's there?"

She tried spinning her head around, noticing she really couldn't until she freed her upper half.

"Please, allow me." Came the voice again. Before Brooke could struggle again, the books around her started to get lighter.

She watched in surprise and shock, as the books that were once her captor floated above her before being put back in order on the shelf that they had fallen off of.

"There we go. I hope that helps somewhat."

Now having the ability, Brooke looked behind, as she found herself not in her room anymore.

The room was lit dimly and wood furniture was the main décor. Books were everywhere, either on shelves or on the floor in an untidy manner. Both the floor and ceiling were dressed in Cobblestone.

Brooke then noticed the man in the room.

He was old, very old, with a long white beard and a monocle over his right eye. He was dressed in dark royal purple robes, while a long dark purple hat rested on his head. Golden Stars and Moons were embroidered onto the clothing. The man was hunched; putting some of his weight on a walking stick he carried that looked more like a long staff. The end was golden and curled to hold a blue sphere in its grasp. Resting beside him was a big white owl that wore glasses and a scholar's cap, a somewhat cape to its side.

The old man smiled to Brooke, "So sorry for the crash landing. But what can you do when you haven't practiced in a while, hm?"

He walked closer to the girl, "I, am Merle Ambrose," He then gestured to the owl, "and this is Gamma."

Brooke looked from the man, then to the owl. "This has to be a dream."

"Oh, it isn't." The owl said, coming out with a shrilled voice. Brooke replied back in a shrilled voice as well. It was called screaming.

"Now, Now." Merle said, trying to calm Brooke down. Gamma just plugged his ears. "There's nothing to be scared about."

"Talking owl!" Brooke replied, proceeding to take steps back from Merle as well. "Where am I? How did I get here? How did those books fly? Why is there a talking owl?!"

Merle Ambrose put a hand on her shoulder, shutting Brooke up as she gave the man terrified eyes.

"You, young child, are now in Wizard City. I brought you here with one of my invitation spells. However, I haven't had to send one that far in a long time."

"Whoa, whoa." Brooke said, taking the man's hand off of her shoulder. "Spells? Wizards? Those don't exist."

"Not in your world," Merle retorted, "But in this universe, it does."

"Universe?" Brooke didn't think her eyes could get any wider, but her face proved her wrong. She…she was in another universe? She shook her head, "Th-that can't be true. You have to be lying. This has to be a dream. This has to be…"

"I can assure you, it isn't." Merle said, as Gamma flew over to a nearby desk.

"So… So you basically kidnapped me!" Brooke then shouted out, anger on her face. "Why did you bring me here! What do you want with me?"

"We really didn't." Gamma said, "You did accept the invite, did you not?"

"Invite?" Brooke asked questioningly, when she remembered the piece of paper.

"You mean that rolled up piece of paper on my bed?"

"We prefer to call those, 'scrolls'. And yes, that thing." Gamma gestured with his wings. "By breaking the seal and reading the contents, you accepted the invite and therefore, the spell activated."

"I got one line in!"

"Nevertheless, you still opened it."

Merle decided to step in before Brooke tried anything. "What my companion is trying to say here is that you're now here because of the spell."

Brooke shook her head, her anger starting to take over. "You still haven't answered my other questions. If this isn't a dream, then why am I here?"

Merle, instead of trying to explain it in a dark room, decided to gesture his hand to one of the doors in the room, the wooden slate opening up. "Come, walk with me."

Brooke felt so confused. She didn't know if she should be terrified, or angry. One second she's in her room getting ready to leave for her dad's place, the next she's in this strange room with an old man and a talking owl telling her that she's not even on Earth anymore and in a universe that uses Magic.

She wanted to believe that she had maybe took a quick nap after her mom left, that this was the answer to all of this madness. But Brooke never remembered even trying to sleep, let alone successfully doing it. Her dreams were crazier than this.

She didn't want to be near this old man and his owl, but where would she go if she did run away? Would she ever get back to her home? Her parents, her brothers, would she ever see them again? Why did this man want her…?

Merle took Brooke by the shoulder, leading her through the door that shined brightly. Brooke covered her eyes, approaching the door as suddenly she felt her skin getting warmer once stepping through the door. The heat only the natural sun could give her.

Brooke opened her eyes, noticing that they were outside. But the thing that bothered her was that she felt like she just stepped into a fairytale.

Cobblestone was the choice for the streets, except these were lighter in color, with blue arches for the pattern. Houses lined the street, also made of stone with blue shingles for the roof. The doors looked rustic with circular windows at the top, a spiral pattern going across.

Brooke was ushered down the street as they took a left turn up a small hill. She looked behind her, seeing a decent sized pond in the middle of a grassy field behind her, houses and streets lined around it.

Just what was this place again the man said? Wizard City? Why weren't there any wi-

"Look out!"

Brooke whipped her head around just in time for her and Merle to duck as a form swiped over them. They both looked up behind them as Brooke heard the wing beats of… a bird?

Before her in the sky was a giant eagle, golden brown in color as it flapped its wings in a steady rhythm. A head then appeared from up top of it. A young male's.

"So sorry Head Master Ambrose! Still trying to control this bird!"

Merle chuckled, "It's quite alright Nathaniel! Though a little more practice wouldn't hurt."

"You got it Head Master!" The boy then pulled on the reigns that tugged the bird, as it squawked in response. The bird then flew a bit up into the sky as it darted away. "Whoa! Slow down!"

Merle looked to Brooke, as she looked petrified. Oh Dear, not again.

She turned to Merle, an eyebrow up, "Head Master?"

"Head Master Ambrose!"

Both looked in front of them, as a girl ran over to them. She held several books in her hands, dressed in blue and red robes, as her blonde hair tumbled out of her cap. A black and white stick was wrestled between her fingers, as she stopped out of breath in front of the two. 'She's almost as tall as me' Brooke thought, still in fright. She… she looked like a human. The boy too! Well, she wasn't expecting any monsters, but the way Merle said how he hadn't sent an invitation to Earth in a long time…

"So sorry Head Master Ambrose…" The girl managed to get through deep breaths. "I wanted to ask… if I could turn in my Myth project… a little late…. Professor Drake…. Has been making me….run around….and…."

"Well, I suppose I could allow it." Merle hummed, catching a book that had fallen off of her stack and conjuring up a satchel. He then took the books out of her hands, putting them into the new bag. "But just this once, alright Sadie?"

She took the bag, putting it around her body as she beamed, "Of course Head Master! Thanks for the help to!"

The girl then looked to Brooke. "Hey! You must be new!"

"You're a human…" Brooke managed to speak. The girl looked to her confused.

"Human? I'm a Hanum, from the planet Reath. What's a human?"

Brooke looked to Merle, giving eyes that said she was creep-ed out, as Merle looked to Sadie, "Why don't you run along now. I'm giving Brooke a tour of our Campus."

"Alright Head Master Ambrose!" She then turned to Brooke for a second, "I hope we can be in the same class together! See ya!"

The girl then ran off, Brooke turning to Merle with impatient eyes. "Head Master? Campus? You never told me this was a school!"

"You didn't let me." Merle said in response, taking her shoulder again, "Now come along. There's something I want to show you."

'I've been kidnapped to a School. Could this get any worse?' Brooke thought to herself, as Merle ushered her past a small carnival to an arch that read, 'Golem Court.'


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: First Encounter**

"I'm guessing you've never seen a tower before?"

"I have. Just, not this real."

Brooke strained her neck up, looking upon the white and purple-roofed structure that was the tower. The street circled around it, as a sign saying, 'Golem Tower' hanged above the door.

Brooke turned to Merle. "There aren't really Golems in there, right?"

"Well," Merle said. "There are a few that do reside in this tower, but we're not going up that far."

The old wizard finally turned his body towards Brooke."Allow me to explain your predicament. My full title is Merle Ambrose, Head Master of The Raven Wood School of Magical Arts. It's a small Campus, but it houses 6 Schools for our students to choose from. We're actually getting a new school here, but I'm getting off topic."

"Question." Brooke said, raising her hand.

"Yes?" Merle hummed.

"Why am I here?"

"I'll get to that Brooke. Let me explain a few more things so that your answer is a bit clearer."

Brooke huffed, crossing her arms as Merle continued on. "While our Campus is small, our City is not. Wizard City is one of the many planets in the Universe we call, the Spiral. Much like the Milky Way where you come from, the Spiral holds several unique planets. One of them is Reath, where many of our students come from. It is almost identical to Earth, but unlike your planet where Magic doesn't exist, in Reath it is identified and practiced."

"So… I'm the only human here?" Brooke asked, feeling more alienated.

"Not exactly. We have had human students here in the past, but it is rare I will say."

"This still doesn't answer my question." Brooke sighed, looking around them. "I obviously don't belong here, so why did you send me that invite?"

"Well…" Merle started when suddenly the ground shook violently.

The sky got dark fast. Lightning struck the sky, making Brooke scream in fear, as Merle stood his ground. Rain poured as if it were being emptied from a very large bucket. But the one thing that caught both of their attention was one lighted window in the tower. A tall figure strode by.

"He's here." Merle growled, as Brooke looked to the old man.

"What? Who's here?"

"Quickly Brooke!" Merle said, pointing to the door. "We have to get into the tower!"

"Are you kidding?!" Brooke shouted, flabbergasted. "You want me to go **towards **the looming figure in the creepy tower? No way!"

Merle turned to Brooke, a bit irritated. "We don't have time to argue about this, we have to stop him! I'll be at your side, now go!"

"Alright, alright!" Brooke said, lightly jogging to the tower as she put her hand on the door knob. "It was nice knowing me." She whispered to herself, opening the door and running in as Merle followed.

The two entered into a circular room, much like the one Brooke was in when she entered Wizard City. It was similar in décor and items to, but what stood out was the figure in the middle.

His eyes were the first thing Brooke saw.

They were black, with small, white pupils in the middle. He had long, black hair in braids down his neck, as well as a long black mustache and a hanging goatee. Black and Gold robes tumbled over his deathly pale body, as he held a long staff much like Merle's. However his was grey with a golden dragon perched on top, its tail spiraling down from the red orb it sat upon.

"Malistaire." Merle growled to the man in the room.

"Ambrose." The man said back, looking to Brooke who stood next to Merle, stiff as a wooden board.

"And a human. My, my, you don't see much of that kind in this universe." Malistaire's eyes caught with Brooke's as she suddenly felt very, very small.

Merle took a step in front of her, his staff raised. "You are no longer welcome here! Why have you returned?"

Malistaire gave a sly smile in the direction towards Merle. "I'm here to resolve my unfinished business." His gaze then went back to Brooke, who poked her head out from behind the old Wizard. "Is this your latest student? I know you're trying to stop me Ambrose, but you are getting desperate now. You know humans don't believe in magic."

"Hey!" The two turned to Brooke, who had now come out of her hiding spot. "I did believe in magic when I was like, 10!"

Malistaire shot a sneer at the girl, who was now yelling at him. "Did you, little girl? Tell me, do you think you can handle this kind of magic?"

He waved his staff in the direction of Brooke, as the floor suddenly started to rumble. The floor cracked for but a few seconds, as scaly hands gripped the ground from the cracks. Brooke screamed in pure fright, backing up as two Dragon creatures flew out of the split in the ground, wearing green and gold robes. They roared at Brooke, watching her face fill with fright.

Malistaire had contempt in his face as he looked in Brooke's direction. "That's what I thought. Humans are such cowards. All bark," He gave Brooke a glare, "No bite."

Brooke's eyes quickly flashed from being close to tears, to an anger that only violence could solve. That was quickly reverted back to tears though when one of the creatures let out a roar in her direction.

"Attacking an unprepared student? And without issuing a duel? You really have changed Malistaire." Merle said with disgust, as the dragon creatures were closing in on Brooke. She looked to Merle with cries of help in her expression.

"I thought we got over that Ambrose," Malistaire said, watching the creatures. "My Henchmen will soon finish this human off."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Merle announced, pulling out what looked like a leather wallet with colorful rectangles in it.

"And just how are you going to get that to her?" Malistaire asked. "If she even knows how to use them, that is."

Merle looked to Brooke, who almost closed in as he saw a silhouette above Malistaire's head in the form of an owl.

"Merle!"

The two looked up as Gamma flew in and perched on the open window. Merle looked to Malistaire quickly, before chucking the satchel to Gamma. "Gamma! Brooke!"

The owl, understanding what needed to be done, flew into the tower as he caught the small pack in his talons.

"Stupid owl!" Malistaire cried, firing spells from his staff at the owl, as Gamma dodged them all.

"Incoming!" The owl shrieked, getting close to Brooke as he dropped the pack in her hands. She looked at the thing, opening it up as she pulled out… cards?

"Hurry along, Brooke! Take that deck of spell cards and deal with those creatures while I tend to Malistaire myself!" Merle cried, as Malistaire advanced upon the old wizard.

"Don't be so sure of yourself, old man!"

"What do I do with these?!" Brooke shrieked, one of the dragon creatures swiping at Brooke as she backed up fast to avoid.

Malistaire ran to Merle, the two firing spells at each other as Merle was pretty agile for his age. He jumped into the air, flipping backwards as he landed on his two feet. "Pick the spell you want to cast, and throw it in the direction of the Draconians!"

"Are you serious?!" Brooke yelled, noticing the space between her and the dragons was getting very small.

She shuffled through the deck, seeing magical creatures on each card. She picked up one that held a purple and yellow snake. "Alright, I hope this works!"

She threw it at the Draconians, waiting for something to happen. The card just fluttered to the ground, as the Draconians looked back up to Brooke.

She picked another one, throwing one, two, three more, as nothing happened.

"Uh, I think your cards are broken!" Brooke said in a grim reply, her voice starting to shake as one of the Draconians grabbed her arms. "Let me go!"

"What?" Merle said, seeing Brooke's predicament. His eyes widened in his mistake. He quickly turned to Gamma, "Gamma!"

"I got it!" The owl yelled back, flying out of the tower only to return seconds later with a black and white stick.

The owl flew desperately towards Brooke, as the Draconian started to crush the girl in its grip. Gamma was sure of many things, but he didn't know if he would make it.

Merle tried aiming at the Draconian, but was distracted as Malistaire kept firing at Merle. "This match is over, Ambrose!"

Brooke tried dealing with the pain, her fingers holding the last card she hadn't thrown. A fiery cat was the picture as its name flashed before her eyes. She brought her hand up a bit, throwing it into the Draconian's face in a last attempt, "Fire cat!"

They thought the card was just going to fall. However, it shined brightly as the Draconian let go of Brooke in pain. She dropped to her knees, Gamma stopping as the two old men looked over to the battle.

"What?!" Malistaire said in surprise, as the card dissolved into the air, forming an orange glow that resembled fire. A figure leapt from the shine as its body was completely made of fire.

It fell in front of Brooke, growling as it stood its ground. The Draconians tried to advance towards Brooke, but stopped as the cat leapt at one of the Draconians, exploding into a ball of fire. The draconian stumbled backwards in complete pain, as the other draconian looked to the girl.

Brooke just looked to her hands. "I did that?"

"Brooke!" She looked up, just as Gamma dropped the stick in her hands. The item glowed dimly in her hands for a few seconds before the light faded away. The cards that were on the ground also glowed before disappearing and reappearing back into her pack.

"Use the other cards!" Gamma said, as Brooke tried getting up. She couldn't though, "I-I can't… I'm too hurt!"

Merle, seeing an opening, pulled out one of his cards, as he threw it towards Brooke, "Unicorn!"

The card dissolved in a green light that resembled a leaf, as a large, magnificent Unicorn leapt from the shine. It landed gracefully onto the ground, grass and flowers growing from where it stood, as it looked to Brooke.

"Let me fix you right up," the Unicorn said, giving a deep bow as its horn shined.

Brooke felt her body float up in this new glowing light around her, as her body started to feel energized. She landed on her two feet, feeling her joints. Brooke looked to the Unicorn in wonder, "Th-Thank you."

"Not a problem." The Unicorn said, giving one last smile before disappearing into balls of light.

Brooke looked to the two Draconians, who started to advance once more. One of them yelled something in a different language, throwing down the same snake Brooke tried using at first, as the card activated.

The snake curled up and reared its head towards Brooke, opening up as lightning struck out. Brooke put her arms up in defense, feeling the electricity bounce through her bones and veins. She then lowered her arms, noticing she wasn't on the ground having a seizure, as the Snake disappeared.

She noticed the other draconian grab a card from his robes, as Brooke picked one of her cards quickly. "Imp!"

Brooke cast down the card, as suddenly her hand with the stick starting moving on its own. It carved the symbol of the leaf into the air, leaving a green light before the card activated. A green imp sprung out, giving off an eerie chuckle before pulling out a violin and playing a song. The other Draconian held its ears in pain, before the imp vanished.

Merle looked over to see the battle, "Good work Brooke!" He then grabbed another card from his hidden deck, tossing it Brooke's way, "Take this card, and finish them off!"

Brooke caught it quickly, having to dive for it, as the Draconians heard there Master call to them.

"Fail this job, and I'll have both of your heads!" Malistaire cried out. The Draconians moved away in fear before turning their attention back on Brooke.

Brooke looked to the card and then up at her foes, as they both cast different cards. One of them cast a black and purple fairy as she sucked some of the energy out of Brooke. Another was an ice beetle, who shot at Brooke and made her shiver.

Feeling weak and cold, Brooke shot the card Merle gave her at the two Draconians, her hand moving to paint the symbol of fire into the air. "Meteor Strike!"

The card vanished into the air as nothing came out. She started to wonder if it even worked, when Brooke felt a tugging sensation above her.

She watched her hair flicker in front of her face again, looking to where the pull was, as three rifts opened into the air above them. The Draconians, apparently knowing this card, starting running away with their tails between their legs in fright. They suddenly stopped, as if they couldn't run anymore, turning to face the threat as big balls of space smashed to the ground. Meteors.

Alit with flames, two of the biggest ones aimed for the dragons as they smashed into the beings. The Draconians fell to the ground, coughing in absolute pain, as they themselves started to disappear.

With curious eyes, Brooke watched the balls of the light that was the Draconians float up and go back into Malistaire's staff.

The evil old man gripped his staff in mild anger. "So, your human has some potential."

Brooke was about to say something, when Merle stood up straight, saying what he shouldn't have said. "That's right Malistaire, and she shall be the one to stop your madness!"

Malistaire just sneered. "Is that so?"

He looked to Brooke again, who looked to Merle in fear. "What?!"

He chuckled, "We shall see. But for now, I have what I came for."

Merle raised his staff. "Not so fast Malistaire. You're not going anywhere."

Merle started a spell, when something crashed into his staff. It twirled out of his hands to the ground, smoldering as Merle held his hand in hurt.

"You've become weak, old man. We shall cross paths again." Were Malistaire's last words before he disappeared into thin air.

Merle clutched his hand, Gamma flying over to where the old man stood. The two were inspecting the damage to his hand when they heard a voice.

"Merle?"

The two, both of them noticing the other didn't say that, looked over to the origin of the voice.

It was Brooke.

"Wh-what did you mean…?"


End file.
